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With the mercury rising in Tashkent, the re-appearance of the locally-produced Sarbast (independent) brand in bars and shops could not have come at a better time for the country’s thirsty beer drinkers.

Beer is flowing freely once again in Uzbekistan after Carlsberg resumed production at its Tashkent plant. The company suspended its operations in March 2012 over a bitter tax dispute between the company and the Uzbek authorities.

Since the closure, bars in Tashkent had been in the embarrassing position of running out of supplies in the middle of an evening’s drinking. The shutdown also had a negative effect on beer production, which is thought to have fallen by around 20% in 2012.

The revamped Sarbast label features a health warning in Uzbek and Russian outlining the dangers of alcohol consumption. In recent years the authorities in Tashkent have made alcoholic drinks harder to find, restricting sales to specialist outlets.